Item register fos



gept, 24,, E935, H. A. FOQTHORAP FOR WRITINGADDING MACHINES ITEM REGI STER Filed Dec. 31, 1950 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 firept 24, N3. H. A. FOOTHOQRAP ITEM REGISTER FOR WRITINGADDING MACHINES Filed Dec. 31, 1950 3 Sheets$heet 2 xziw f' gwuentoz fizz/7y 7002770/"(1 1 fiapia 24, 1.93%., H. A. FOOTHORAP ITEM REGISTER FOR WRITING ADDING MACHINES Filed Dec 51, 1930 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 gwwntoz 50177027012 Patented Sept. 24, 1935 UNITED STATES TEEN? OFFICE Harry A. Foothorap, Harrisburg, Pa., assignor, by

mesne assignments, to

Underwood Elliott Fisher Company, New York, N. Y., a corporation of Delaware Application December 31, 1930, Serial No. 505,905

9 Claims.

having provision for the automatic restoration of the carrying mechanism, the manual resetting of the number wheels to zero, and a novel relation of the transfer resetting and wheel resetting mechanisms which will permit the independent automatic operation of the transfer mechanism, and cause the operation of the wheel resetting mechanism to reset the transfer mechanism as an initial and final function of the zero setting mechanism. Subordinate objects will appear as the succeeding description is developed.

In the accompanying drawings,

Figure 1 is an elevation of my register with one side of the casing removed and certain of the parts in section;

Figure 2 is a top plan view of the register;

Figure 3 is a somewhat fragmentary view of the same, showing the positions assumed by the parts when the transfer mechanism has been reset by the initial operation of the zero setting mechanism;

Figure 4 is a similar view, with the parts in the positions they assume when the wheels have been reset to zero and immediately preceding the final resetting of the transfer mechanism;

Figures 5, 6, and '7 are detail views of an indicating wheel;

Figure 8 is a transverse section through the register;

Figure 9 is a detail view of the transfer head; and

Figure 10 is a detail view of the number wheel shaft and a zero setting pawl.

The present invention is an improvement on Patent No. 1,172,891, issued February 22, 1915, to Laganke and Smith, showing an earlier form of a similar column register, carrying mechanism, carry restoring mechanism, and zero resetting or clearing mechanism.

The novelty of the present invention over the mechanism shown in the above-named patent, resides in the provision of improved operating mechanism for insuring the correct timing of the carry-restoring and zero resetting functions under control the manual zero resetting-means.

In the upper front portion of the usual register casing l are a series of indicating value wheels 2, having peripheral digits 3 observable through a sight opening i. The indicating wheels 2 are driven t -rough intermediate gearing 5 from a series of toothed number wheels 6 mounted on a number wheel shaft 1, the toothed edges of the number wheels projecting beyond the front of the register casing for engagement with a master wheel, which, in a manner well understood in the is movable laterally for denominational spacing as it engages successive number wheels, and is rotatable in different degrees under the control of keys, to accumulate any value from one to nine in any denomination of the register.

Associated with the series of number wheels 6 is a series of transfer devices 8, which include a head Q mounted to rock on an axis l0, and having a pivotal connection at its rear end, as indicated at H, to the front end of a link l2 pivoted intermediate its ends to one arm 13 of a bell crank head operating lever, the other arm I l of which is connected to a motor spring I500.

Normally, the head 9 and link l2 are held in an aligned position, as shown in Figure l, by a detent l5 urged by a spring [6, and notched, as indicated at ii, to engage a roller l3 at the rear end of the link Each head 9 and link l2 constitute a transfer toggle lever, which in spite of the motor spring 55c, normally retains an aligned or straightened condition, because the joint of the toggle lever, represented by the pivotal connection M, occupies a position directly in line with the axis iii of the head, and the pivotal connection between the link I2 and the operating lever 53, which places the toggle lever under endwise tension from the spring a.

The transfer heads 9 are equipped with carrying pawls I9, check dogs 20, and carry-tripping fingers 2!. The carry-tripping finger 2| normally occupies a position in which, when a number wheel is moving from 9 to 0, it will be engaged by a carrying lug 22 on the number wheel 6. When the carry-tripping lug 22 collides with its appropriate carry-tripping finger 2| the head Q will be swung sufficiently to flex or break the transfer toggle lever 9, i2, and immediately the associated motor spring l5a will swing the operating lever 54 to further flex the transfer toggle lever and cause the transfer pawl I9 to engage and advance the number wheel of next higher denominational order. The structure thus far described, excepting the specific construction and arrangement of the wheels of the register, is described in my Patent No. 1,576,961.

When the tripped carrying toggle levers have been flexed and the carrys or transfers effected, the levers will occupy the positions shown in Figure 4 of the accompanying drawings. To reset the tripped transfer mechanisms from their operated positions to their normal positions, the parallel supporting arms of a transfer resetting bail 23 are pivotally mounted near the opposite ends of a slotted guide block 24, in which the respective carry-driving levers I3, I4 are also pivoted. The lower ends of the bail arms are connected by a bail rod or restoring bar 25 normally located out of interfering relation with the carrying mechanism. When, however, any transfer toggle lever has been tripped by its wheel 6 and advanced by its spring-pressed driving levers I3, I4, the depending end 26 of the drive lever which extends beyond the link I2, will move forwardly into proximity to the restoring bar 25 which, at this time occupies its normal idle position, shown in Figure 1. In this disposition of the parts, if the transfer restoring bail 23, 25 is swung back, the bar 25 will contact the ends 26 of such of the operating levers I3, I4 as have moved forwardly, and will return them to their normal positions against the resistance of their motor springs I5. The operating levers I3, I4, during such return, will straighten their flexed toggle levers 9, I2, the rear ends of the links I2 of which will engage and slightly rock their corresponding detents I5, as the toggle levers resume their straightened positions, until the rolls III on the free ends of the links enter the seats I'I formed in the detents, which snap back to normal under the influence of their springs I6, to hold the toggle levers and their operating levers I3, I4 in their reset positions.

In the lower portion of the register a rocking yoke-shaped bail operator 2! is pivotally mounted upon a cross rod 32 the arms of the yoke being connected by links 28 to the opposed arms 23 of the restoring bail 23, 25. An extension 29 of one of the arms 2'I of the yoke, projects in substantial parallelism with an arm 30 of a rocking segment 35 also journaled on the shaft 32 adjacent the bail operator 1? "l. A yielding or elastic operating connection between the bail operator 725 the seg-. ment 3I is formed by a spring 33 interposed between the arms 29 and 3B, and relative movement between the operator 2! and the segment 3I in one direction is limited by a stop 34 on the segment.

The segment 3| is engaged by a toothed gear 35 which is also in toothed engagement with a transfer restoring slide 36 projected through the front wall of the casing I for actuation by a transfer cam movable with the carriage of the machine, in a manner well understood in the art.

In the present embodiment of the invention, the traveling key carriage (not shown, but well known in the art, and indicated in patent to Laga-nke and Smith, 1,172,891, heretofore mentioned) on which the transfer cam is mounted, inserts the cam between the outer end of the slide 36 and the flanged abutment 60, as the carriage returns towards the left hand margin, and forces the slide inwardly, to rotate the intermediate gear 35 and rock the segment 3| in clockwise direction.

The arm 30 of the segment operates through the spring 33 to rock the restoring bail actuator 21, which, through the links 28, swings the restoring bail 23, 25 counter-clockwise.

The bail, colliding with the projecting ends 2'6 of the tripped driving levers I3, l4, rocks the latter counter-clockwise to their normal positions, retensioning the drive springs I511.

The driving levers, as they return to normal,

impose a longitudinal draught on the fixed toggle lever carrying devices to straighten the latter and return them to their normal positions, in which they are latched by the detents I5, when the free ends of the toggle links i2 Wipe over the high points flanking the seats I! in the respective detents to enable the detent springs I6 to fit the seats about the rolls I8 on the free ends of the toggle links l2, as such rolls settle into the seats.

The foregoing mechanism forms part of the subject matter of a co-pending application, Serial No. 505,906, filed of even date herewith.

The number wheels 6 are cleared or reset to zero after the entry of an item, or after a subtotal has been secured, by rotating the number wheel shaft 7, which has a longitudinal resetting shoulder 37 (Figures 1 and 10) arranged to pick up the resetting pawl 38 of any number wheel which may have been moved out of zero position.

The number wheel shaft I is normally stationary and when all the wheels 6 are in their zero positions, the longitudinal resetting shoulder 31 on the shaft lies just in front of the toothed ends of the resetting pawls 38, with relation to the front of the column register, when viewed from the right hand.

In zero-resetting operations, the number wheel shaft is rotated first in the same direction that the wheels 5 rotate when adding, for a single complete turn, and is then returned to its initial position. When the shaft has made a complete rotation in additive direction, the pawls of all of the number wheels will be aligned and the number wheels will be at zero. This resetting rotation of the shaft I is effected by means of a pinion 39 fixed at one end of the shaft, and meshed with a toothed zero segment 43 mounted to rock on the shaft 4|, and having a stop arm 42 which cooperates with the hub III of a carrying head 9 to arrest the resetting segment in its home position.

The segment 40 is operated by a Zero setting lever 43 mounted to swing about the shaft 4 I, and

having a loose connection with the segment 4!] n Figure 4, the segment 43 will be rocked to rot-ate I the number wheel shaft I and reset the item wheels 2 to zero.

It is, however, necessary to make provision for the preliminary resetting or' restoring of any transfer or carrying devices that may occupy operated or tripped positions, since the check dogs 20 of the tripped carrying devices lock the numeral Wheels against rotation. Furthermore, the numeral wheel. shaft I, in resetting the numeral wheels to Zero, turns the latter in additive direction past the 9 positions. just at the end of the counter-clockwise travel of the zero-res ting lever 13. thus causing the carry-trim teeth 22 (Figure 8) of the numeral. wheels B to trip all the carrying devices 9, I2, and consequently locking the wheels against rotation, thus necessitating the restoration of the carrying devices to their set or cooked positions before any amount can be entered in the wheels.

It is evident, therefore, that the zero-resctting mechanism should initially restore the tripped carrying devices 9, I2, if any, to enable the numeral wheels 5 to be reset to zero, and later, effect a second restoration of the carrying devices, all of which have been tripped incident to the zero-resetting operation.

Furthermore, it is highly desirable, in order to facilitate the assembling of the parts and to eliminate the necessity for precision workmanship and adjustment, that the intermittent restorations of the carrying devices under control of the Zero-resetting lever, be definitely arranged to occur just prior to starting the wheels on their zero-resetting travel, and subsequently to the completion of the zero-resetting operation, respectively.

By this arrangement, no interference is possible between the operations of restoring the carrying mechanism and resetting the wheels to Zero, such as was liable to occur without a definite separation of the times of occurrence of these operations.

Furthermore, a more compact and efficient mechanism is provided to accomplish these results. The loose connection between the zero set ting lever 43 and the zero setting segment 43 permits a preliminary, independent movement of the lever 43 while the stud 44 is traversing the length of the notch 45, at the beginning of the counter-clockwise movement of the zero-resetting lever, and similarly permits, after the resetting movement of the segment 46 has been completed and the zero-resetting lever started on its return to its home position, a limited independent movement of the lever 43 before the segment 40 is picked up by the stud 44 and retracted.

These periods of independent movement of the lever 43 at the beginning of its resetting and of its retracting movements, respectively, are utilized for the resetting of the transfer mechanism, by forming a transfer resetting cam 46 on the lever 43, adapted to engage a roller 48 on a rocker arm 41 journaled at 46' on a stud projecting from the adjacent side wall of the casing, the free end 49 of the rocker arm 41 being disposed to contact a roller 50 on the arm 30 of the carry-restoring segment 3|.

The cam 46 on the lever 43, by its contact with the roll 48 on the rocker arm 41, maintains the free end 49 of the rocker arm against the roller 53 on the carry-restoring hail-operating segment 3 i, so that the latter is operated immediately at the beginning of the counter-clockwise stroke of the zero-resetting lever 43.

The rocker arm also serves as an additional stop to arrest the carry restoring bail-operating mechanism on its return to home position under the influence of its spring 52.

Assume that the zero-resetting mechanism occupies the position shown in Fig. 1, and that certain of the carrying devices have been tripped by the entry of an amount on the numeral wheels 3, as in Figure 4, and that it is now desired to reset the numeral wheels 6 and item wheels 2 to zero.

The operator grasps the zero resetting lever 43 and swings it in counter-clockwise direction. The zero-resetting lever, at the start of its counter-clockwise travel around pivot 4| as a center, will press its cam 43 against the rocker arm 41 and drive the latter rearwardly or counter-clockwise, the free end 49 of the rocker forcing the bail operating segment 3| in clockwise direction, and tensioning the return spring 52, so that the arm 33 of the segment, operating through the cushioning spring 33, will rock the bail operator 21 to swing the carry-restoring bail 23, 25 couner-clockwise against the projecting ends 26 of the tripped drive levers l3, l4, and restore the latter and the tripped carrying devices to their cocked positions.

The carry-restoring segment 3|, in its clockwise travel, rotates the intermediate gear 35 and idly retracts the rack slide 36.

The parts are now in the positions shown in Figure 3, the carrying devices being fully restored, with the high point of the zero-resetting lever cam 46 in contact with the roll 48 on the rocker arm 4? which lies at the limit of its counter-clockwise travel.

The foregoing operation occurs while the stud 44 of the zero-resetting lever 43 is traversing, in counter-clockwise direction, the slot 45 in the zero resetting segment 40, the slot being of such length as to afiord time for restoration of the tripped carrying devices and the withdrawal of the check dogs 20 from the numeral wheels 6. Continued advance of the lever 43 in counterclockwise direction, will cause the stud 44, now in contact with the left-hand end wall of the slot 45 of the zero-resetting segment 40, to rock the segment counter-clockwise and impart a complete rotation to the numeral wheel shaft 1 in the direction in which the numeral wheels 6 turn in adding operations.

The shaft 1, as it turns, causes its longitudinal shoulder 31 to engage the toothed ends of the resetting pawls 3B (Figure 10) pivoted on the numeral wheels 6 and resting on the periphery of the numeral wheel shaft, and advance the now unobstructed wheels in adding direction towards their zero positions.

During the zero-resetting operation, the high point of the cam 43 on the zero-resetting lever 43 escapes past the roll 48 on the rocker arm 47, thereby freeing the spring 52, which returns the carry-restoring mechanism, to normal position, beyond the path of the projections 26 of the driving levers l3, I4.

As the wheels 6 pass their nine positions, the carry-tripping teeth 22 thereof, trip all the carrying devices, whereupon the drive springs operate the drive levers i3, M to flex the carrying devices in a transferring operation, but since the wheels 6 are being simultaneously turn-ed in the same direction by the numeral shaft l, the carrying action is swallowed or blended with the zero-resetting action, and has no effect on the numeral wheels, except that the check dogs 23 engage their respective numeral wheels topositively lock them in their zero positions, and may impart a slight lead to the wheels over the resetting shoulder 51?. The units numeral wheel, having no carrying device, is returned to its zero position by the shaft 1, assisted by the overthrow preventing detent 53, which, like the other detents 53, is urged by a strong spring against the toothed periphery of the numeral wheel, so that as its roll settles between two adjacent teeth, it insures the correct positioning of the wheel, and may advance it slightly relatively to the longitudinal zero-resetting shoulder 33 of the shaft '5.

The parts now occupy the positions shown in Figure l, in which it will be seen that the concave edge of the zero-resetting segment 4! lies in contact with the hub H! of the carrying head 9 tripped by the units, to arrest the numeral wheel shaft I just as it completes its rotation. Also the check dogs 29 of the tripped carrying devices lock the numeral wheels against rotation, except the units wheel, which has no corresponding carrying device. The zero-resetting lever 43 is also arrested at the limit of its counter-clockwise stroke, with the high point of its cam out of the path of the roll 48 of the carry-restoring rocker arm M, which has returned to its normal position. The operator now retracts the zero-resetting lever 43 towards its home position, and the stud 44 thereon retraces its path along the slot 45 in the zero-resetting segment 4t] to permit independent movement of the lever relatively to the segment, limited by the length of the slot, during which relative movement, the cam to acts upon the carry-restoring rocker arm 47 to again restore the tripped carrying devices and free the numeral wheels for rotation, prior to returning the zero-resetting segment to home position, so as to condition the wheels for subsequent accumulating operations.

The stud 44, upon reaching the left-hand end of the slot 45, picks up the zero-resetting segment 4.), which, during the continued return or the zero-roasting le /er turns the pinion and numeral wheel shaft 1 to their home positions, the longitudinal resetting shoulder 3i mg from the tooth l ends of the pawls 38 so that when the Zero-resetting lever e3 reaches its home position, determined by contact of its stop 42 with the hub ID, the item wheels 2 and mu meral wheels 5 are in their zero positions, and the zero-resetting, and, carry-restoring mechanisrns are in their normal positions.

A latch 5! (Figures 1 and 2) comprising a lever pivoted at 58 on the under face of the top plate of the register casing, is manually'shiftable by a finger piece 59 projecting upwardly from one end of the latch through a slot in the top plate, to interpose the opposite free end of the latch into, or displace it from, the path of travel of the zero-resetting lever 43 to lock the latte against, or free it for, operation.

It is believed that, from the foregoing the construction and the mode of operation of this invention will. be clearly understood, but I reserve the right to erlect such changes, modifications and variations of the illustrated structure as may come fairly within the scope of the protection prayed.

What I claim is:

1. The combination with a series of number wheels and a series of carrying devices, of fer restoring mechanism operative to reset the carrying devices, a zero setting segment operative to reset the wheels to zero, a zero setting lever cooperating with the transfer restoring mechanism to reset the carrying devices, and means operatively connecting the zero setting lever with the segment for operation of the latter after the carrying devices have been reset.

2. The combination with a series of number wheels and carrying devices therefor, of transfor restoring mechanism for rese ting the carrying devices, a zero setting segment operative to reset the wheels to zero, a zero setting lever arranged to operate the transfer restoring mechanism, and a slot and pin connection between the zero setting lever and the segment, whereby continued movement of the lever after the carrying devices have been reset will cause the operation of the segment to reset the wheels to zero.

3. The combination with a series of number wheels and a series of carrying devices therefor, of transfer restoring mechanism for resetting the carrying devices, a segment movable to reset the Wheels to zero, a zero setting lever arranged to operate the transfer restoring mechanism during the initial movement of the lever in either direction, and means operative after such initial movement of the resetting lever in ei her direction to operate the segment in unison with the lever.

i. In a register, the combination with a. series of number wheels, and a series of carrying devices therefor, of transfer restoring mechanism opera- 1 tive to reset the carrying devices, an oscillatory transfer resetting segment operative to reset the wheels to zero, an oscillatory zero setting lever, means, including a cam for operating the transfer restoring mechanism during initial movement of the lever in either direction, and a slot and pin connection between the lever and segment, whereby the segment may be moved by the lever after such initial movement of the lever in either direction has reset the carrying devices. 2

5. In a register, the combination with a series of number wheels, and a series of carrying devices therefor, of a resetting bail for carrying devices, a bail operator, and a slide movable to operate the operator, of a rocker also movable to 2 operate the bail operator, at zero setting lever coacting with the rocker, a zero setting segment opcrative to reset the wheels to Zero, and means to operate the segment and lever in unison at different stages in the operation of the latter.

6. In a register, the combination with a series of number wheels, and a series of carrying devices therefor, of a restoring bail for the carrying devices, a bail operator, means for moving the bail operator, a zero setting mechanism for the 3 wheels, including a lever and segment having a loose connection, and means whereby initial movement of the resetting lever in either direction will move the restoring bail operator.

In a register, the combination with a series 4 of number wheels, and a series of carrying devices, of a restoring bail for the carrying devices, a restoring bail operator, zero setting mechanism for the Wheels, including a segment and a zero setting lever having a common axis of movement 4 and a slot and pin connection, a rocker arranged to move the bail operator, and a cam movable with the Zero setting lever and cooperating with the rocker.

8. In a register, the combination with a series 5 of number wheels, a series of carrying devices, and transfer restoring mechanism therefor, of zero setting mechanism, including an oscillatory segment and an oscillatory lever having a comrnon axis of movement, and a slot and pin connection providing for limited movement of the lever in either direction independently of the segment, and means for operating the transfer restoring mechanism, and including a cam operated by said lever.

9. In a register, the combination With a seriesof number wheels, a series of transierring devices therefor, and transfer restoring mechanism, including a rocker member, of zero setting mechanism, including an oscillatory segment, and 6 means for operating the rocker and segment in succession, including a lever movable about the axis of the segment and having a limited degree of movement independently of the latter, and a cam operated by the lever. 7

HARRY A. FOOTI-IORAP. 

